Finding the right talent continues to be an urgent issue for companies. As the economy continues to improve, businesses are experiencing intense competition in the job market. Yet, when it comes to the critical work of talent acquisition, many companies fail to focus their full attention to this urgent need.
In iCIMS’ recently published U.S. Hiring Trends report, we reviewed job creation and demand trends within the United States across all industries, geographies, and company sizes. We discovered there is a notable gap between talent demand (defined as the number of available positions) and talent availability (defined as the quantity of applications). Additionally, we looked at passive candidates, people who are interested in your brand but not yet ready to apply for a new job, and found there are key trends in certain industries, geographic locations, and company sizes. The following presents these findings, and what companies can do to address today’s new trends in talent acquisition.
Data Insights
Whether you’re an organization seeking top talent or a candidate searching for your next career, a little data goes a long way. After analyzing many data points around the concentration of available jobs in the U.S, we found multiple trends tied to available jobs vs. available talent by industry, geography, and company size.
- The pharmaceutical and construction industries have the most notable gap between talent demand and talent availability.
- The South has the highest demand for talent with the lowest number of applicants entering the hiring pipeline for open positions compared to all other regions. However, when company size is controlled, the West has the highest demand for talent.
- All companies, regardless of size, have more applicants entering the hiring pipeline than the number of open positions.
The Rise of the Passive Candidate
According to a 2015 iCIMS survey, 64 percent of job seekers said they would consider joining a talent pool to receive company updates. We examined candidates that have expressed passive job interest and are registered in talent pools by industry and found the following insights:
- Retail and Healthcare is Prime for Passive: More than half of all passive candidates – people who are interested in your brand but not yet ready to apply for a new job – are interested in companies within the retail and healthcare industries.
- Passive Candidates Convert Quickly in the Midwest: The Northeast region has the highest concentration of passive candidates interested in jobs. However, the Midwest region has the highest rate of converting passive candidates to active applicants.
- If You Build Talent Pools, the Candidates will Join: All companies, regardless of size, have more applicants entering talent pools than the number of open positions.
While it’s understood that events beyond our control may affect the ebb and flow of how competitive a certain market is, talent acquisition teams now have the tools they need to take control – regardless of the economic conditions or trends.
As these changes continue to impact the way job seekers search for the right role and employers approach talent acquisition, iCIMS will continue to analyze the data and provide insights into the hiring landscape on a quarterly basis. To learn more about the recent trends, please consider attending the webinar, “How to Create and Maximize Talent Pipelines” hosted by Meghan M. Biro at 2:00 p.m. EDT on October 6, 2015.
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